mining & no ucti r t s n co · technical applica-tions, well drilling, oil and gas....

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Battery-powered machines are saving money – and the environment

[ Feature ]

Electric future

Mining & ConstructionA magazine from Epiroc miningandconstruction.com

Fuel saving in tough conditionsSmartROC T40 does wonders for Limak Holding

Pages 8–13

OUR CUSTOMERSCommunicating down underSue Goc enjoys new challenges in Australia

Pages 42 – 43

MY WORK INSIDE

The Battery Issue 02–2018

Exceeding expectationsBoomer S2 face drilling rig big hit in northern Spain

Pages 14 –15

FOLLOW-UP

Industries we serve

Mining orders receivedby commodity (2017)

Divisions and reporting segments Equipment & Service / Tools & Attachments

The Group in numbers

■ Mining and natural resources Underground min-ing, surface mining, exploration, geo-technical applica-tions, well drilling, oil and gas.

■ Infrastructure Underground civil engineering, surface civil engineering and urban develop-ment, quarrying, deconstruction and recycling.

Our solutions aim to solve our customers’ key issues – including requirements to reduce operating costs, in-crease productivity, increase utilization of equipment, reduce environmental impact, and enhance health and safety conditions.

13 000

Epiroc Group – get to know us better

■ More than 13 000 employees

■ Customers in more than 150 countries

■ 145 years of experience

■ Revenues 2017: SEK 31.4 billion

Our innovations

About EpirocEpiroc is a leading productivity partner for the mining, infrastructure and natural resources industries. With cutting-edge technology, Epiroc develops and produces innovative drill rigs, rock excavation and construction equipment, and provides world-class service and consumables. The company was founded in Stockholm, Sweden, and has passionate people supporting and collaborating with customers in more than 150 countries.

With a heritage that dates back to 1873, Epiroc has been formed out of Atlas Copco's mining and construction business, and builds on proven expertise, quality and performance.

6%Iron

2%Zinc

6%Nickel/lead

10%Other

3%Platinum

4%Coal

Revenues by segment

28%Tools &

Attachments

72%Equipment & Service

Rock Drilling ToolsDedicated to rock drill-ing tools worldwide

Hydraulic Attachment ToolsDedicated to hydrau-lic attachment tools for carriers

Rocktec Dedicated to technology solutions, and drives the automation and interoperability expansions for Epiroc’s divisions

Mining and Rock Excavation

ServiceDedicated to parts and

services aimed at maximizing customers’ productivity

Surface and Exploration

DrillingDedicated to rock and explo-

ration drilling equipment

Underground Rock Excavation

Dedicated to a wide range of tunneling and

mining equipment

Drilling SolutionsDedicated to a wide range of

rotary drilling equipment

“Your interest – our top priority”

Enjoy!

On my radar

Battery-operated machinesThere have been some very exciting product launches in this area.

AutomationIt’s great to see strong inter-est in our solutions for auto-mation and interoperability.

Delivery performanceWe have ramped up produc-tion following increased demand. We closely monitor that we deliver in line with our promises.

Per Lindberg President and CEO, Epiroc

D EAR CUSTOMER, we are your partner. Everyone at Epiroc shares the mind-set that the customer’s interest is our top priority. We want to boost your productivity, enhance your safety and cut your emissions – all while

lowering your total cost of operation. Ambi-tious? Yes. Possible? Absolutely. We are trav-eling with you on this journey.

June 18, 2018 was a milestone for us. It was the day Epiroc was listed on the Nas-daq Stockholm stock exchange and became a fully independent company. We have 145 years of history within Atlas Copco, but we are also brand new.

I JOINED EPIROC recently, in early 2018. Part of my focus so far has been to travel around the world to visit our organization and cus-tomers. It has been a pleasure to go deep into mines and see major open pits and in-

frastructure sites. The visits have left me ex-cited about the future.

WHETHER THE COLLEAGUES I meet are work-ing in R&D, production, service, or anoth-er part of our business, they are all focused on making good things better. One exam-ple of this innovative spirit is the ongoing move towards battery-operated equipment and away from diesel, especially for under-ground equipment. We already have a port-folio of battery-powered machines, but this will grow both in numbers and in size. This will generate enormous benefits for you, our customer, in addition to serving the envi-ronment. It is the future and it is the right way to go. Make sure not to miss the in-depth reporting in this issue about the excit-ing electrification trend.

I look forward to continuing our produc-tivity partnership.

34%Gold

25%Copper

3miningandconstruction.com

EDITORIAL

06 EPIROC IN BRIEFKeep tabs on what's happening in the world of Epiroc.

14 FOLLOW-UP

The Boomer S2 face drilling rig has improved productivity and mineral grade content at the El Valle-Boinás mine.

20 AROUND THE WORLD IN BRIEF

Assorted news from the mining industry.

32 ON SITE“Electric will replace diesel,” says Epiroc’s Erik Svedlund. Mining & Construction visits the team driving the change.

42 MY WORKCommunications and Branding Manager Sue Goc wants people to interact with Epiroc’s brand.

46 SUSTAINABILITYTegelbruket is fulfilling the needs of young people in Örebro.

48 BLAST FROM THE PASTHow Atlas Copco helped make the Mont Blanc Tunnel happen.

52 FROM THE LABThe DiscovOre Compass simplifies exploration drilling.

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Selected highlights

Mining & Construction is published by Epiroc. The magazine focuses on the company’s know-how, products and methods used for mining and construction worldwide.

Address Epiroc Rock Drills AB, SE-701 91 Örebro, Sweden Web: epiroc.comPhone: +46 (0)10 755 00 00

Publisher Anna Dahlman HerrgårdEmail: anna.dahlman. [email protected]

Editor Gustaf Höök Email: [email protected]

Editorial Board Anna Dahlman Herrgård, Ann-Sofie Andersson, Hanna Håll, Evgenia Kulikova, Sofie Gielen

Editorial Production & Art Direction/Layout Rubrik AB, Kaserntorget 6, SE-411 18 Gothenburg, Sweden Phone: +46 (0)31 719 06 00 Web: rubrik.se

Printed by Trydells AB, Sweden 2018

Website miningandconstruction.com

Trademarks and reproduction of articles All Epiroc product names (including but not limited to Pit Viper, Boomer, Symmetrix, SmartROC, COP and Secoroc) are registered trademarks of one or more Epiroc companies. For questions regarding free reproduction of articles, photos or artwork in this magazine, please contact the Editor or the Publisher.

Safety firstEpiroc is committed to complying with or exceed-ing all global and local rules and regulations on personal safety. However, some photographs in this magazine may show circumstances that are beyond our control. All users of Epiroc equipment are urged to think of safety first and always use proper ear, eye, head and other protection as re-quired to minimize the risk of personal injury.

ON THE COVERBattery electrification is a game changer for the mining indus-try. Battery machines are better suited for use in enclosed spaces underground, since the need for cooling and ventilation – which make up the single largest ener-gy cost in mines – will drop to almost nothing.

The automotive industry has come a long way towards large-scale electrification, and electrification is increasing in other areas. For the mining industry, battery-powered machines have substantial merits.

16 Partnership paying off The conventional process of slot raise opening is time- consuming and costly. Brazilian mining giant Ferbasa opted for the Easer, in close cooperation with Epiroc, and has not looked back.

FACE TO FACE

22 Improved samplingSouth32 tried an alternative to wet reverse circulation for collecting core samples in the Cerro Matoso mine. Epiroc’s Explorac 100 rig with compressed air has greatly improved both productivity and quality.

INNER WORKINGS

44 (Re)built to last45 000 drilling hours were beginning to take their toll on Imperial Metals’ Pit Viper 351. After a midlife rebuild and control system upgrade, the rig is drilling like new.

OUR CHALLENGE

Batteryelectrification

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“It’s super easy and saves a lot of time”Building the Yusufeli Dam, Limak Holding is lowering the dam body from 715 to 440 meters above sea level. The SmartROC T40 is making a challenging project possible.

OUR CUSTOMERS

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[ FEATURE ]

4 Mining & Construction | No. 02 | 2018 5miningandconstruction.com

Next year’s PDAC convention will take place March 3–6 in Toronto, Canada. This annual event is the leading convention for people, companies and organi-zations in, or connected with, mineral exploration. More than 1 000 exhibitors will attend, as well as 3 500 investors and 25 600 attendees from 135 countries. pdac.ca/convention

CONTENTSNo. 02 2018

FIGURE

Epiroc Mining PDC bit outclasses competitor’s Tricone bit Epiroc takes

automated drilling to the next levelA COMPETITION at a coal mine near

Grants, New Mexico, pitted the Epiroc 10-5/8 Matrix Body PDC (Polycrystalline Diamond Com-pact) bit against a competi-tor’s 10-5/8 Tricone bit. The two bits were run on a Pit Viper 275 blasthole rig in similar ground conditions at the mine. The re-sult was a landslide victory for Epiroc, with the PDC bit achiev-ing a 28 percent advantage in average penetration rate and a 140 percent advantage in ser-vice life.

SINCE 2015, Epiroc has converted 27 blasthole drills located in Aus-tralia, Mexico and South Africa to autonomous operation. The drills are being put to work by some of the world’s largest mining com-panies such as BHP, Goldcorp, Barrick and Anglo American. Through August 2018, the rigs

have drilled a combined 6 752 009 meters fully autonomously with

off-site control.

What inspires you at work?

To serve all our customers to the best of our ability, Epiroc strives to keep

our employees inspired.

PROJECT NEWS

bit.do/smartrocc50factsMorerigscan-audit.comMore

RigScan auditing success story in Jordan

Epiroc joins partnership for sustainable mining

JORDAN’S MINING SECTOR is flourishing and major

contractors are purchasing used equipment when build-ing mines. Epiroc Middle East is helping customers prolong the lifetime of equip-ment thanks to RigScan, an

advanced audit service. Since February 2018, seven rotary blasthole drill rigs have been audited – demonstrating Epi-roc’s approach to used equip-ment, as a company that sup-ports the machines even after 10 to 15 years of production.

underground mines in Kiruna and Malmberget, and will also take the form of a virtual mine. Here, new tech-nology will be developed and tested in a real mining environment to ensure that the Swedish mining industry can remain competitive and create jobs and growth, both locally in the county of Norrbotten and nationally. This re-quires new control systems, new and improved mining equipment, as well as complex and efficient management

systems that meet future demands for a sustainable industry. Reaching that goal will demand a new type of collab-oration: a digital ecosystem in which the partners’ digital systems and oper-ations are linked.

“SWEDEN’S MINING AND minerals industry is competing to be the world’s most sustainable. Since sustainability require-ments and technology are now devel-oping at a rapid pace, Swedish com-panies have to join forces to ensure that we can mine safely and sustain-ably in the future. That bodes well for a mining nation like Sweden,” says Mikael Damberg, Minister for Enter-prise and Innovation.

Within the framework of the testbed, the best means of building an efficient autonomous production system that is carbon dioxide-free and has the high-est conceivable level of safety will be studied. In the future autonomous and digitalized mine, people and machines will work side by side. Implementation of the project will require very signif-icant investment on a national scale and the partners are therefore seeking collaboration with more suppliers, the Swedish state, research institutes and universities.

“WE’RE PROUD TO be part of a collaborative effort to develop the world’s most mod-ern mining operation. This aligns well with our focus on autonomous and battery-operated products and solu-tions that improve productivity and safety in the mines,” says Per Lindberg, President and CEO of Epiroc.

C arbon dioxide-free, digitalized and autonomous mines. That’s the ambition of a newly-formed part-nership involving Epiroc. To set

a new world standard for sustainable mining at great depth, we have joined forces with LKAB, ABB, Combitech and AB Volvo, starting a unique test-bed in the orefields of northern Sweden.

THE SUSTAINABLE UNDERGROUND Mining (SUM) testbed will be created in LKAB’s

WITH THE RECENTLY inaugu-rated Control Tower –

located in Epiroc facilities in Örebro, Sweden – Epiroc has boosted opportunities to help customers on their digitaliza-tion journey. It’s designed to be an innovation arena to collabo-rate around, and to explore and develop automation and infor-

mation management solutions.“We built it to be a place

where, along with our custom-ers and partners, we will de-velop the functionalities of to-morrow’s mining operations and also do actual work with-in these areas,” explains Jonas Albertson, President Rocktec division.

Epiroc is one of the partners in the Sustainable Underground Mining testbed. The recently inaugurated Control Tower in Örebro, Sweden, will be a huge asset in this digitalization venture.

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“Having the support of my immediate man-ager coupled with the autonomy to do my job is highly motivating for me. I enjoy working with a self-driven team and appre-ciate the opportunity to provide input on key decisions that affect my work. Also, I relish the opportunity to coach others and find the process inspiring.”

Janet D. AdanusaHuman Resources and Administration Manager, Ghana

“It’s the fact that I’m helping custom-ers and co-workers. I also enjoy person-al growth and the great friendship that I’ve developed with my co-workers around the world. I know this answer is a cliché, but it’s the truth.”

Brad Major Technical Service Manager, Canada

“I’m really inspired by the friendly atmo-sphere in the office, which is the same in ev-ery Epiroc office around the world. Also, I appreciate the experienced and profession-al customers from whom I can learn many things. And being able to see the results of my work when customers come back to thank us is something that gives me joy.”

Maxim Maklakov Business Line Manager Drilling Solutions, Central Asia

6 752 009 METERS

Epiroc Control Tower – the digital mine in action

miningandconstruction.comRead more

COPROD system big hit in GhanaBCM International Group, the largest private contract miner in Africa, has bought 31 SmartROC C50 and two SmartROC CL drill rigs in a bid to increase efficiency and reduce fuel costs. The rigs will be used at two of Gold Fields’ sites in Ghana (Tarkwa and Damang) and at BCM’s own mine at Nzema, Ghana. Both models are equipped with COPROD technology.

COPROD, a unique rock drilling system from Epiroc, combines the high penetration rate and low diesel consump-tion of tophammer equip-ment with the hole straightness and hole quality of DTH drilling.

UNIQUE SYSTEM


Product news and innovation stories (choose country and click Media): epiroc.com

Epiroc corporate press releases (click Media): epirocgroup.com

EPIROCIN BRIEF

With a height of 275 meters, the Yusufeli Dam is a construction project of epic proportions.

Its remoteness and size place great demands on contractor Limak Holding. Epiroc rigs are helping

the company to meet these efficiently.

mountain high

River deep

LIMAK HOLDING IS INNOVATING FOR SUCCESS IN CHALLENGING CONDITIONS

[ On location ]Turkey

9miningandconstruction.com8 Mining & Construction | No. 02 | 2018

� Gustaf Höök & Duygu Evrankaya � Limak Holding & Volkan OkyayOUR CUSTOMERS

F ROM A DISTANCE, driving through the valley, it looks slightly surreal. Small dots float in mid-air, slowly moving away from the mountain-side. On closer inspection it’s no less intriguing. The bigger dots are drill rigs, while the smaller ones are plat-forms and other pieces of equipment. All the objects are being carried downwards by a cableway connected

to either side of the valley.“We are working in tough geological conditions

and this pushes us to find alternative methods for the continuity of our operations,” says Atilla Coskun, Machine Supply Chief of Limak Yusufeli Dam Construction.

The bottom of the valley would normally be filled by water from the Çoruh river, flowing from the mountains of the eastern Anatolia region – re-ferred to as “the roof of Turkey” – to the Black Sea. Since 2013, however, this has been a huge construc-tion site. When operational, tentatively in 2020,

the Yusufeli Dam will be able to store 2.2 billion cubic meters worth of water and the underground power station will generate almost two billion kilowatt hours of energy.

Limak, Cengiz & Kolin JV was awarded the contract to build the dam. Limak Construction Company is responsible for both the dam and the power station construction, facing many challeng-es along the way. A big one is to make sure that the walls of the dam stay intact.

OPERATOR MUSTAFA DOGAN positions the Smart- ROC T40 drill rig at the bottom of the basin wall. Parts of the wall are covered with concrete boxes, placed in a check pattern. He drills a hole in the wall and repositions the rig to the side.

“The next step, using another machine, is to place a rock bolt in the hole,” says Doğan. “Then dolly devices are put round it, so that the pressure from the rock is distributed over a bigger area.”

He gestures at the check pattern on the wall.“That’s the boxes, covered in concrete.”

fault rates are also low, which is a big advantage – especially since this location is so remote. The SmartROC T40 that started working on site in June 2015 has reached almost 10 000 hours of working performance – and it still fully meets our expectations,” says Coskun.

STANDING ON THE floor of the basin looking up, the magnitude of the project hits home. The rigs po-sitioned on the platforms on the dam walls look toy-sized. Down here, three SmartROC T40 rigs are drilling vertical holes that will be filled with explosives.

Exiting from one of the rigs, a SmartROC T40, Operator Mikail Celik has just finished a drill-ing cycle.

“Efficiency is always important, especially in a project this big,” he says. “You want to drill fast without compromising on quality. With this rig, I can use the rod handling system to program the drilling cycle and then the machine will drill to the exact desired length no matter what the type

The dam body in what will be the Yusufeli Dam is being lowered by

275 meters. SmartROC T40 rigs are the key to success.

The anchor drilling is a way of dealing with the unstable rock conditions on site. Pieces of rock falling from the walls would pose a great dan-ger during construction of the dam, so keeping everything in place is hugely important. Horizon-tal drilling is more difficult to perform than ver-tical drilling, but the flexibility of the SmartROC T40 makes it possible, which is a big bonus for Limak Holding. This is not least due to the fold-ing boom, which enables the rig to reach further – thus covering a larger area – than other rigs.

“Basically, I can make an extra row of holes – so there’s more drilling and less tramming. Also, it’s easy to make holes of very high quality. I perform drilling operations of 35–40 meters per hour during a shift on a partly hard rock.”

R OCK BOLTS ASIDE, there are many more figures that show Limak Hold-ing’s gargantuan task. For instance, 86 kilometers worth of roads – in-cluding tunnels – will be built, and more than 3 000 people are working on the project. The natural valley is very deep, but in order to build the dam Limak Holding has to remove a lot of rock when shaping the dam

body. The level will be lowered by 275 meters.“At this point, the level we’re operating at is

roughly 500 meters. We’re planning to lower the dam body from 715 to 440 meters above sea level.”

Coskun continues:“The rock quality – as in hard and fractured

formations – and the climate have a negative im-pact on operations. Being aware of the challenges we would face here in Yusefeli, we were very selective when it came to choosing equipment. For instance, saving fuel in such a big and long- running project is vital.”

Limak has used Epiroc equipment many times in the past. Its first collaboration was on the Devoll Hydroelectric Power Plants in Albania, and Limak has partnered with Epiroc for a num-ber of dam projects in Turkey. For the Yusufeli project, various brands were compared during the pre-purchasing period, after which Limak decided to proceed with the SmartROC T40 as the main drilling rig. A total of nine SmartROC T40 rigs are being used on site, as well as two older-generation SmartROC rigs, five Boomer 282 and three Boomer L2 D rigs.

“Epiroc gave us a commitment that the Smart- ROC T40 would provide fuel savings of up to 40 percent. At first glance that sounds utopic, but the machine has lived up to the promises. The

Innovation is key in challenging projects.

A cableway was built to get the equipment

in place.

Atilla Coskun Machine Supply Chief, Limak Holding

■ Limak Construc-tion was founded in 1976 and has specialized in all types of infra-structure and superstructure projects

■ Operating in 10 countries

■ Approximately 66 000 employees

■ Ranked 85 in the ENR (Engineering News-Record) top 250 international construc-tion companies list

Limak Holding

Mustafa Dogan Operator, Limak Holding


OUR CUSTOMERS

5 KEYS TO SUCCESSw

High operating productivity

Trust in the brand

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Providing fuel efficiency

Serviceadvantage

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Shaping the dam body

The first SmartROC T40 of the project, deliv-ered in June 2015, has clocked up more than 10 000 operating hours.

Limak Holding is very familiar with Epiroc equipment and believes in the performance and quality of the brand, making Epiroc a natu-ral choice.

SmartROC T40 drill rigs drill excellent holes and also provide fuel savings of up to 40 percent.

The performance of the SmartROC T40 and its user-friendly design en-ables Limak Holding to carry out minor servic-ing and maintenance work using its in-house service team.

The Epiroc SmartROC T40 is a “sine qua non” – a machine absolute-ly essential for the proj-ect. It plays a critical role in shaping the body of the dam.

“I think that Epiroc machines – and the SmartROC T40 in particular – have certain qualities that set them apart”Mikail Celik, Operator Limak Holding

■ The Yusufeli Dam and Hydroelectric Power Plant Project, built in the Çoruh basin, will be Turkey’s high-est dam at an elevation of 275 meters

■ The total storage volume will be approximately 2.2 billion cubic meters

■ The power plant will gen-erate 1 888 billion kilowatt hours of energy annually

Limak Holding has collaborated with Epiroc on a number of projects, starting with the Devoll Hydro-electric Power Plants in Albania. Since then, the companies have partnered in several dam projects as well as two major airport projects in Turkey: Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport and Istanbul New Airport. Other ongoing projects include the Ankara-Sivas high-speed railway, the Northern Marmara highway and TANAP (the Trans-Anatolian natural gas pipeline).

Epiroc and Limak Holding

of rock. I just supervise. It’s super easy and saves a lot of time. The hole quality is great, too.”

Celik elaborates:“I’ve been doing this job since 2002. Having

worked with many different brands, I think that Epiroc machines – and the SmartROC T40 in particular – have certain qualities that set them apart. The design provides for maximum efficien-cy without compromising performance during operation. For instance, the combined effect of the hydraulic system and the control method means that the machine can move a lot quicker.”

S OME OF THE ROCK excavated from the valley will be used to produce por-tions of the concrete needed on site. With the project getting closer to completion, vast quantities will be needed. Yusufeli is a double-cur-vature arch dam and the total vol-ume of high-strength concrete to be poured during dam body construc-tion is four million cubic meters. As

for the tunnels passing through the mountains, eight Epiroc Boomer face drilling rigs are used during tunneling operations.

To sum up, the Yusufeli Dam project is a chal-lenging but, above all else, rewarding one for Limak Holding.

“The Yusufeli Dam will be the sixth highest arch dam in the world and of great importance to Turkey. We’re very proud to be playing a part in this,” says Atilla Coskun.

Mikail Celik Operator, Limak Holding

Yusufeli Dam

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OUR CUSTOMERS

Alejandro Barrera, Drilling Supervisor, Orovalle Minerals

There were plenty of challenges when OroValle Minerals started trialing the new Boomer S2 face drilling rig. Fast forward a year and expectations have been surpassed.

Ticking all the boxes

Thanks to the Boomer S2 rig,

a drilling round can be performed up to 40 minutes

faster in the El Valle- Boinás mine.

■ Application: Com-pact rig for mining and tunneling

■ Key features: Optional ROPS/FOPS certified cab, boom func-tion, accessible service points from ground level.

Rock drill with improved pene-tration rate and 1 000 hours ser-vice interval. Optimized Rig Control System (RCS) for faster drilling and life-time of rock drill-ing tools.

Boomer S2

bit.do/boomerS2factsMore

[ On location ]Spain

O roValle Minerals has been mining for gold and copper, primarily, at the El Valle-Boinás mine in north-ern Spain since 2009. Currently try-ing to improve productivity and mineral grade content, the company faces some significant challenges, including a complex geology. The new Boomer S2 – the replacement model for the Boomer 282 drill rig, several of which are already in use at the mine – has been playing an im-portant role.

SINCE THE SPRING of 2017, OroValle has been trialing the Boomer S2. Drilling Supervisor Alejandro Barrera was chosen to be trained by Epiroc and has, in turn, trained others, such as the young Drilling Operator Daniel Alvarez Fernandez: “The hard-est part was to get used to just one control panel for both booms instead of two, as in the 282 jum-bo, but I got accustomed quickly,” says Alvarez Fernandez. “Compared to the 282, the S2 is more comfortable; there is less vibration and less noise, the rig is easier to steer and there’s better visibility at the front so I can see better what I’m doing.”

Alejandro Barrera highlights the safety aspect: “The rig also feels very safe, especially when mov-ing from one work face to another. The machine’s chassis is compact but strong, and feels well- balanced and stable. This gives us more security on the corners.”

Are there any other safety aspects?“Yes, when doing roof bolting with the Boomer

S2, nobody has to step in front of the jumbo as the

feed on the boom can be turned backwards towards the operator platform. The operator can remain under a safe area, supported by rock, during the process. This is a big improvement for us.”

What about productivity?“The COP MD20 hammer on the Boomer S2 in

combination with the Epiroc Magnum SR35 rods has given us great results, especially when doing blasthole drilling in harder rock. The total drill-ing cost has been significantly reduced thanks to the great increase in penetration rate, which re-duced the drilling time of the holes by 25 percent. When we’re doing blasthole drilling, specifically 55 holes per round of four meters depth, with the Boomer S2 we can drill 30 minutes faster – sometimes even 40 minutes faster – than with the Boomer 282 or any other boomer at this mine.”

How do you find the Rig Control System (RCS)?“I can honestly say that the RCS, including

drill plan handling, is one of the best things for drilling in general. Even for a very experienced driller there is always a margin of error, because the human eye is not perfect. With the RCS there’s no mistake. It tells me exactly where I have to drill so it’s easier and faster.”

Anything you’d like to improve?“There have been some small issues with the

measuring sensors of the RCS, specifically when it comes to measuring the rock drill’s depth. Epiroc has already changed most of them. When everything is working, the RCS is 100 percent accurate, really precise and something amazing to see.”


FOLLOW-UP

14 Mining & Construction | No. 02 | 2018

� Adriana Potts � Markel Redondo

F erbasa is among the bold-est mining companies in Brazil and is recognized as a pioneer in the use of many vanguard technol-ogies. For more than 30 years, Ferbasa has been doing business with Epi-roc – and the relationship still has the same innova-

tive momentum. A recent example is the develop-ment of a new solution for slot raise opening. In a true example of synergistic work, the two com-panies have been collaborating on and testing the Easer – a mobile rig for raise boring. The machine integrates mobility, safety, productivity, flexibili-ty and many other advantages. Wanderley Lins (Ferbasa) and Paulo Ribeiro (Epiroc Brazil) met up to talk about the partnership.

When did Ferbasa and Epiroc start doing busi-ness together? WANDERLEY LINS: “The partnership dates back 30 years and has encompassed the use of a wide range

PAULO RIBEIRO

Mechanical Engineer, Business Line Manager at Epiroc Brazil. Based

in São Paulo, Brazil.

A 30-year partnership between one of Brazil’s best performing mines and Epiroc has made for a revolutionary solution in the raise boring process. Look out for the rise of the new Easer.

WANDERLEY LINSMining Engineer, Mining Director at CIA Ferro Ligas da Bahia – Ferbasa, Ipueira Mine. Based in Medrado, Bahia, Brazil.

[ On location ]Brazil

IN FOR

HAULTHE LONG


FACE TO FACE


� André Luiz Marques � Jairo Henrique Shutterstock

The combination of a high- performance mine and a

focused provider offers great possibilities. Here are four key factors for transforming this potential into tangible KPIs:

A trusted relationship Ferbasa had the confidence to change processes based on the

promise of a prototype. Epiroc trusted in their goodwill to invest in the solu-tion. There was much at stake, but also a lot of trust – based on 30 years of successful partnership.

Innovative spiritThis was not the first time Ferbasa had invested in inno-

vative proposals from Epiroc. This mining company is not afraid of trying what’s new, and history has proven that this approach pays off.

Collaborative workThe commitment, proactivity, fellowship and transparency

between Epiroc and Ferbasa’s teams made all the implementations more than possible. The deployment was completed in record time.

High-level technologySeeing the new Easer in action is amazing. Only a revolutionary

engineering project could deliver these results.

KEYS TO A SUCCESSFUL

PARTNERSHIP

4

bit.do/easerLfactsMore

Currently one of the 500 largest companies in Brazil, Ferbasa conducts activities in the areas of mining, metallurgy and forest resources. Its mission is to combine high-quality products with strong socio-environmental performance. A leader in the production of ferroalloys and the only integrated ferrochrome producer in the Americas, Ferbasa

is one of the 10 largest companies in Bahia.

■ Founded in 1961■ Annual revenues of over US$

500 million■ Exports mainly to the United

States, European Union and Japan

■ 17.5 percent sales growth in Q1 2018 (internal market)

ferbasa.com.brMore

and agreed to bring in the machine for a trial peri-od. The objective was to validate its performance and clarify any issues. At first, we were concerned about the size of the equipment, but during com-missioning and operations we were able to con-firm its viability. The Easer was used in the under-ground chromium mine at Ipueira in the city of Andorinha, in the state of Bahia, northeast Brazil.”

Did the Easer help to improve safety and decrease the use of explosives? WL: “We have succeeded in decreasing the num-ber of steps required to get the hole done from 12 to only four. Blasting and cable-bolting opera-tions are not necessary anymore.” PR: “Opening a slot raise is now much quicker and safer. Long-hole drill rigs can be used only

for production purposes, optimizing the process. The Easer also guarantees that the raise will be 100 percent opened during the blasting process.”

Did Epiroc and Ferbasa face any specific challenges along the way? WL: “Some rearrangement was required to accommodate the drilling tools, to fit in with operational needs. The drift around the equipment was extended to allow enough space for maneuvers.” PR: “We did adapt the system somewhat, to better direct the drilling waste from the hole and facilitate operational pro-cedures. All these improvements were made in full synergy with our factory and were reported accordingly. This will support our designers in making the necessary improvements to new machines thanks to our experience with Ferbasa.”

What about human challenges? How did the operators engage? WL: “They got very enthusiastic about how their work would be safer and much less stressful. And of course, they loved the air-conditioned cabin and the ergonomics in general.” PR: “One of our best technicians was fully responsible for the machine. In addition, Epiroc sent experts from Sweden and Mexico to run training in new processes and equipment features. This was accomplished in just 30 days. We trained two well-qualified operators at first, and then exponentially multiplied their knowledge by sharing with others.”

Now that all the challenges have been resolved, what other results have you seen? WL: “It really had a positive impact on our business. Operat-ing costs dropped and are still going down. Other highlights are fewer people involved, higher productivity, greater flex-ibility and, last but not least, greater safety.” PR: “Our measurements at Ferbasa show savings of up to 60 percent, looking at the direct labor factor alone. We have also been able to demonstrate a 48 percent reduction in the work shifts required to open a slot raise.”

So could we expect this partnership to keep going? Maybe for 30 more years…? WL: “Testing of the Easer began in December 2017 and after all the customization and training, it began to drill in Janu-ary. I do believe that this machine will initiate a new era in the relationship between Ferbasa and Epiroc.” PR: “The test period ended in June 2018. In May, Epiroc held a customer day at Ferbasa, showing the Easer and the Epiroc solutions that integrate their fleet as well. Professionals from all over Brazil and other South American countries visited us, and the Easer was the key attraction. In summary, we strongly believe that the Easer is a new milestone. So yes, we hope that our partnership will extend for at least another 30 years.”

of solutions from Epiroc such as the Boomer 282, Simba 1254, Scooptram ST 6C and Diamec U6. Many milestones have also been achieved. For ex-ample, Ferbasa was the first mine in Brazil to use the ITH Simba to drill slot raises, as well as to use slit hammers with them.” PAULO RIBEIRO: “It’s a long-standing relationship, with many challenges and achievements. During all this time, Epiroc and Ferbasa have cooperated to improve results and create new solutions.”

Why did Ferbasa decide to go for the Easer? WL: “Ferbasa always seeks to be aligned with the latest technologies available in the market and Epiroc was developing a very exciting new con-cept with this new Easer model, so we started bouncing off some ideas.” PR: “The conventional process of slot raise opening is time-consuming and costly, lacking in quality and exposes people to risk. We thought it would make great sense for Ferbasa to try out the Easer.”

What were its most attractive key features? PR: “The Easer is a combination of a Simba chas-sis and a small raise boring machine. The main difference is that this rig is mobile, with a high level of maneuverability and fast set-up.” WL: “We saw a huge opportunity for applying this new technology in free face opening – in other words, in blind hole-slot raise operations and in ventilation shaft and infrastructure holes.”

How did the project start out? WL: “We began discussions about two years ago

The mobility of the Easer rig has been a significant benefit for Ferbasa. Also, opening the slot raise is much safer for Operator Maristônio Aquino da Silva and his co-workers.

In focus: CIA Ferro Ligas da Bahia – Ferbasa


FACE TO FACE

01 New tunneling training center to create thousands of jobs Melbourne, Australia

� A training center in Melbourne – the first of its kind in Australia – is set to instruct thousands of local workers in the art of tunneling. It will include a replica tunnel with a full-height entrance, three multi-purpose engineering workrooms and training facilities including tunnel shaft and concrete lining spray simulators, as well as virtual reality experienc-es. Victoria’s Labor government is investing heavily in tunneling, delivering a pipeline of major projects stretching over more than a decade, and is planning to make the Australian state a world-leading tunnel-ing hub.

02 Cement trade booms after reopening of Ethio-Eritrean border Adigrat, Ethiopia

� Cement trade between Ethiopia and Eritrea is flourishing, following the normalization of relations and the reopening of the border between the coun-tries on September 11, 2018. The countries have been at a stand-off for two decades, following the war that lasted from May 1998 to June 2000.

Business activities have made a remarkable recov-ery, with cement being a major commodity for im-port into Eritrea. A minimum of 20 trucks carrying cement leave daily from Adigrat, some 900 kilome-ters north of Addis Ababa, to the Eritrean border towns of Senafe, Adi Keyh and Dekemhare.

03 Major new silver deposit expected in Mexico Durango, Mexico

� Canadian company Southern Silver Explora-tion is enthusiastic about the resource potential of its flagship Cerro Las Minitas (CLM) project in Du-rango, Mexico. Early stage prospecting revealed ma-jor potential for gold-silver-copper mineralization. Sources say the company is working towards an ex-ploration target of about 300 million ounces of silver, which makes for a compelling prospect.

From 2010 to date, the company has completed over 50 000 meters of exploration drilling. A prelim-inary economic assessment is to be published during the first half of 2019.

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� Scientists from the University of Bergen, Norway, are using autono-mous robots and piloted submarines at depths of up to 2 500 meters in a five-year project which will explore the sea floor between Norway and Greenland. The aim is to better under-stand why some areas are rich in sub-stances such as zinc, gold, copper and rare earth minerals, while other areas

have all but none; also to estimate the size of the deposits and what damage mining the minerals would have on the environment.

“The ocean sea floor on Earth is, for the most part, unknown. It’s totally fair to say that we know much more about the surface of the moon and Mars than we know about our own planet,” scien-tist Thibaut Barreyre told Reuters.

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04 Robots explore deep sea floor minerals Norwegian Sea

Francisco CoboPresident of the

European Demolition Association (EDA)

What role does the EDA fill?“It’s been a meeting point for the Euro-

pean demolition industry since 1978. We share experiences and knowledge between countries and companies, and work on improving relations with suppli-ers. An important task is to educate au-thorities on the differences between the building and the demolition industries.”

Which differences are those?“Building companies start from a

clean slate – a space to build in. Dem-olition companies start with a much more complex situation, with a number of unknown problems. They have to in-vestigate the structural condition of the building, find out what potentially dan-gerous materials have been used, look for pollutants and contaminants like lead or PCB, and choose the best tech-nique to carry out the demolition. There are a lot of environmental as well as health and safety issues to take into consideration in these projects.”

What are the main challenges for the future?

“A lot of focus is on recycling and the circular economy. Debris should not be considered residue, but valuable mate-rials to be reused. Also, there are new discoveries about hazardous materials every year, so we have to continue to develop safe procedures for these.”

Rare birds spotted at restored quarry heath

DRC declares cobalt “strategic”, hiking royalties

THE PRIME MINISTER of the Democratic Re-public of the Congo has signed a decree to designate cobalt and other minerals as “stra-tegic” and therefore subject to higher royal-ties. The change is part of a new mining code that came into effect in June 2018, which axes tax exemptions and hikes royal-ties and profit taxes.

The government considers minerals des-ignated as “strategic” to be important for the economic, social and industrial future of the country, making the royalty 10 per-cent instead of 3.5 percent. Mining compa-

nies say the tax hikes and the cancellation of 10-year exemptions for existing projects against changes breach previous agreements with the government and will deter further investment.

Note: The DRC is the world’s leading min-er of cobalt, a mineral which has seen a surge in demand due to the manufacture of electric car batteries and mobile phones. Read more about the use of batteries in mining in this is-sue’s Feature section.

A PAIR OF NIGHTJARS – rare, nocturnal birds – has been spotted nesting in an area of restored heath-land within The Lodge nature reserve at Sandy Heath Quarry in Bedfordshire, UK. This is the first time since 1973 that nightjars have been spotted in the area. Building materials company Lafarge Tarmac has been working with the RSPB, a nature charity, to create heathland and acid grassland on the parts of Sandy Heath Quarry where quarrying has finished.

Peter Bradley, senior site manager at The Lodge nature reserve, said: “We’re over the moon. It’s a great success story for The Lodge and for everyone who has been involved in the heathland recreation work here over the last 15 years.”

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What are the challenges facing the demolition

industry?

Cobolt is causing a conflict between mining companies and the Democratic Rebublic of the Congo.

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Want to keep track of what’s happening in the mining and construction business?

Visit miningandconstruction.com for links to industry news and other interesting reading.

AROUND THE WORLDIN BRIEF

tion on the capacity of re-alizable meters. After eval-uating the alternatives, the company opted for Epiroc’s Explorac 100 drilling rig. The rig’s RC method with a DTH (down the hole) ham-mer, performed with com-pressed air, was the best way to continue obtaining reli-

able samples and accomplish the required meters. Other advantages include inclined drilling, main-tenance facilities, cost reduction, better opera-tional safety and access to narrow areas.

“With the Explorac 100 we are drilling 16 me-ters per hour, with production peaks of up to 20 meters per hour,” Vergara says.

He also highlights the amount of sample recov-ered from the hole, with levels reaching up to 95 percent – in contrast to the previous levels of 86 percent.

NEVERTHELESS, FOR EVERYONE at Cerro Matoso, the most important aspect is safety. The remote con-trol units and technology of the Explorac 100 al-low the operators to control the machine from a distance and minimize physical interaction with

The fastest way to quality samples

LEARN MORE // RC DRILLING

bit.do/rcfactsMore

The drilling for sampling department at South32’s Cerro Matoso mine in Colombia identified an opportunity

to improve its drilling process. The company introduced the Explorac 100 rig – and results have left the experts

more than satisfied.

t the Cerro Matoso mine in northern Colombia, temperatures can rise to 35 degrees Celsius. Rock slopes

show shades ranging from greys to intense brown, which is evi-

dence of the nickel content. Cerro Matoso, operated by global resources company

South32, has been active for over 36 years and is one of the world’s largest ferronickel mines. There is also a production plant producing fer-ronickel through a metallurgical process and the product is exported mainly to Asia.

When drilling for sampling, it is key to guaran-tee the safety of the operation, the quality of the samples, the productivity of the process and the cost of management.

“For this reason, we control productivity by measuring the meters per hour drilled and the quality of the samples extracted with a rigorous QA/QC program,” says Drilling Supervisor Oto-niel Vergara.

THE DRILLING PROCESS must be optimized to guar-antee the required number of sampled areas in accordance with the mining plan.

“The drilling performance for fiscal year 2017 prompted us to look for alternatives, including new drilling technologies,” Vergara says.

The mine used to perform sampling drilling by the wet reverse circulation (RC) method, using a tricone bit system and water, at a rate of around 8 meters per hour in the pit area. This allowed South32 to obtain wet samples, but with a restric-

REVERSE CIRCULATION (RC) drilling represents a fast and economical way to retrieve the high-quality mineral grade samples needed to efficiently plan mining and quarrying operations.

Otoniel Vergara Drilling Supervisor, South32

OPTIMIZING PROCESSESA representative sample is collected through the split-ter box.

Air (marked red) passes to the ham-mer between the inner and outer pipe. Cuttings (marked blue) are collected through the inner pipe.

The drilling bit is powered by com-pressed air. Excess air pushes cuttings upwards through the inner pipe.

Cuttings pass through a swivel and continue to the cyclone, to-gether with excess compressed air.

[ On location ]Colombia

22 Mining & Construction | No. 02 | 2018 miningandconstruction.com 23

INNER WORKINGS � Hilary Otero � David Sánchez Björn Nilsson/Epiroc CMTEC

The Explorac 100 performs DTH (down the hole) sampling drilling with compressed air, enabling more reliable samples and more meters to be drilled. With this rig, South32 is drilling 16 meters per hour at the Cerro Matoso mine compared to 8 meters with the previous rig and method.

drilling tools. This is what Fernán de la Barrera, Explorac 100 Operator, values the most.

“This rig is easier to operate. Using the same re-mote control, you can control all the function-alities. The rods are fitted through an automat-ed arm that I guide from the control without the need to get closer to the pipes,” says de la Barrera.

For the operator, the small size of the machine and the possibility of drilling on slopes provide a remarkable advantage. This is largely due to the characteristics of the terrain.

ON JUNE 30, 2018, at the end of their fiscal year and with the support of the Explorac 100, Cerro Ma-toso achieved its drill plan for sampling. As a re-sult, delivery of a second Explorac 100 is already on its way and Cerro Matoso hopes to transform its drilling fleet for sampling into more versatile and efficient rigs.

“The Explorac 100 has been the great new dis-covery for South32 at Cerro Matoso. These ma-chines, although small in appearance, are big on efficiency and that’s why they’re such an integral part of our daily work,” says Otoniel Vergara.

4. Three splitters to choose between

Riffle, cone or rotary splitters are available as options. The cyclone is fitted to a

hydraulically foldable mounting post.

South32 SOUTH32 IS A globally diversified mining and metals company, producing bauxite, alu-mina, aluminum, energy and metallurgical coal, manganese, nickel, silver, lead and zinc at the company’s operations in Austra-lia, Southern Africa and South America.

South32 is also the owner of a high-grade zinc, lead and silver development option in North America, and has several partnerships with junior explorers focused on base metals.

CERRO MATOSO IS dedicated to mining and transforming the nickel contained in ferronickel, using an energy-intensive pyrometallurgical process.

For more than 36 years Cerro Matoso has been exploring, extract-ing, producing and selling the nickel contained in ferronickel for the production of stainless steel. Cerro Matoso produced 43 700 metric tons of nickel in fiscal year 2018.

Drilling with the Explorac 100 has improved South32’s

grade control drilling rate from 8 m/h to 16 m/h.

The Explorac 100 facilitates inclined drilling with up to 45 degrees of

inclination.

To date, the Explorac 100 has completed more than 826

hours of work at Cerro Matoso with no critical failure.

Cerro Matoso operation

2. Flexible drillingDrilling angles from 45° to 90°.

3. Remote-controlled for safetyThe two remote control units offer precise control of the rig at a distance of up to 40 meters, keeping both the operator and helper out of harm's way.

1. Hands-free rod handlingRod handling system enables safe, hands-free loading, unloading and stacking of drill rods.

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The Explorac 100 is a crawler-mounted compact rig specifically designed for reverse

circulation drilling at depths down to 250 meters. It’s remote-controlled for extra safety.

EXPLORAC 100

Fast and accurate

south32.netMore

45 ° 826 hx 2

Fernán de la Barrera Explorac 100 Operator, South32


INNER WORKINGS

CONTENTS

Epiroc is launching a new generation of battery-powered underground equipment. Meet the people behind the scenes.

Better batteries, access to raw materials and customized grids will pave the way for more renewable energy.

ON SITE

Changing the landscape

ORIENTATION

Key factors in the transition

28

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38PERSPECTIVE Sunny times ahead

Using solar energy makes more sense for Samoa than im-porting millions of liters of oil each year. To counter grid instability, the island nation has turned to Tesla’s Powerpack battery solution.

40SURVEY

“It allows climate- smart systems”

The biggest advan-tages and the main conditions for con-tinued success; three experts have their say on the current and future state of the battery revolution.

41SEVEN THINGS From Volta to graphene

From galvanic cells in the year 1800 to the “wonder mate-rial” of our times, batteries have come a long way. A clos-er look reveals how the rechargeable battery segment has been revolu-tionized.

[ FEATURE ]

An opening to use more renewable energy and a way of saving money, battery solutions have huge potential – not least for the mining industry. Large-scale electrification is around the corner,

but what will it take to really make it happen?

Batteryelectrification

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S cientists say that increased greenhouse gas emissions mean a risk of an average 2°C of glob-al warming, which would have serious conse-quences on many levels. The biggest culprit is fossil energy: how we extract, process and use it. Robust efforts are required if the world is to reach the goal set out in the Paris Agreement:

keeping the temperature rise well below 2°C and work-ing to limit it even further to 1.5°C.

Key to this is increasing the share of renewable en-ergy. Since this production cannot be managed in the same way as in the case of fossil sources or nuclear power, there will be a greater need for energy storage.

“There’s no shortage of renewable energy – quite the contrary. In global terms, solar and wind energy are what there is most of,” says Bo Normark, Thematic Leader Smart Grids and Electric Storage at InnoEner-gy, the innovation engine for sustainable energy across Europe.

“If we can get more of it into the energy system, there are huge gains to be made – partly because this energy is clean, and partly because it’s so much more efficient than fossil fuels. It’s an unbeatable combination.”

He continues:“Where storage is concerned, initially this involved

large depots connected by transformer lines, but now the need for shorter storage has increased. In such cas-es batteries are of great interest.”

T he transition to large-scale electrification has come farthest in the automotive industry, with practically all vehicle manufacturers having ambitious projects in progress. Electrification is also increasing in areas such as automation, robotics and medical technology.

“As batteries improve, their applications are broadening. Now it’s possible to power even large vehicles with batteries,” says Kristina Edström, Professor of Inorganic Chemistry and head of the Ångström Ad-vanced Battery Center at Uppsala University in Sweden.

If this development is to con-tinue the battery cells need to be made even more powerful, safe, long-lasting and predictable. This last aspect means knowing how much of the capacity you dare use without ruining the battery

– and the more you increase the amount of energy, the more im-portant safety becomes.

“It’s already possible to increase the amount of energy, making considerably more powerful bat-teries – but first we have to prevent undesirable reactions, so that the batteries don’t damage the equip-ment they’re in,” says Kristina Edström.

“Then it’s a matter of combining high power with high energy. To-day batteries are either power-op-timized or energy-optimized, but sometimes you want both: to be able to run equipment for a long time and recharge it quickly too.”

INCREASED USE OF batteries makes many demands: from policies that provide the right conditions for a shift to electrification, to a well-functioning complete ecosys-tem – from extraction of the raw material to battery recycling – that is sustainable in the long term. Most modern types of battery depend on special metals or metal compounds that are not available in very large quantities. Around a million metric tons of nickel is mined per year, for example, compared with the 1.4 billion metric tons of iron mined each year. Demand for the three main “battery metals” – nickel, cobalt and lithium – has increased dramatically.

“Not least because the automotive industry wants to secure its resources,” explains Per Storm, General Manager at EIT RawMaterials North, the largest con-

Bo NormarkThematic Leader Smart Grids and Electric Storage, InnoEnergy

Kristina EdströmProfessor of Inorganic Chemistry, Uppsala University, Sweden

Global climate change is a momentous issue that calls for a major transition. To create a society that is sustainable in the long term, we need to increase the share of renewable

energy – and batteries are playing a key role.

NO TIMETO WASTE


ORIENTATION � Gustaf Höök Björn Öberg � Shutterstock

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sortium in the raw materials sec-tor worldwide.

“In the medium term, cobalt is the big problem. It’s not mined in that many places and is a by-prod-uct of other metals. And a very large proportion of it is mined in Congo, where there are social and environmental concerns.”

He continues:“As regards nickel, production capacity is greater than

in the 1990s when China was rapidly industrializing and there are most likely opportunities to increase it. Lithium is the least used of the three metals and its pro-duction can be increased, not least in Chile and Bolivia. I believe that demand for lithium will grow substantial-ly, but that the market can meet the increased demand.”

A great advantage of batteries compared with fossil fuels is that they can be recycled, and here systems need to be expanded; partly to reduce the burden on natural resources, and partly because increased environmental awareness is making sustainability a hygiene factor. How mining and processing are car-

ried out will also be part of the equation – looking at the overall climate impact in an effort to use the clean-est electricity possible.

“Many big mining companies are largely owned by big international funds such as pension funds, which means there is pressure to act sustainably. I’m certain that using recycled raw materials is becoming increas-ingly important. Battery manufacturers will make de-mands too,” says Per Storm.

TO SUM UP: We are at the start of a transition that in-volves major challenges, but offers even greater oppor-tunities. For the mining industry, the advances made by batteries are not just about making electrical power underground pay off. They also put mining in an im-portant position as regards materials and allow locally produced electricity to be used – a great advantage in remote locations.

“If the grid is designed for maximum load, battery capacity can be introduced higher up the grid,” says Bo Normark.

He elaborates: “In Australia, the combination of lo-cal solar power and batteries has become extremely at-tractive. Electrical power using batteries has a huge number of benefits.”

Per StormGeneral Manager EIT RawMaterials North

“I’m certain that using recycled raw materials is becoming increasingly important”

Per StormGeneral Manager, EIT RawMaterials North

WHAT NOW?

Batteries: The next generationBATTERY DEVELOPMENT IS in an interest-ing phase as regards both technology and materials. The aim is to be able to manufacture more powerful and safer batteries with a longer life. Nickel, co-balt and lithium are currently the three dominant metals, but their supply is to some extent limited. If the technology is developed so that stability increases,

iron could be used – which would open up completely new possibilities.

Another challenge is to better pro-tect and increase the electrode surface in batteries. Serious efforts are in progress using methods such as thin film technology, so that layers can be placed on top of each other, and nanotechnology.


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Erik SvedlundMarketing Manager Vehicle

Electrification, Epiroc

“I quickly realized that battery power could not just replace

diesel, but could become a profitable business for both

us and our customers”

une, 2018. These are busy days at Epiroc in Örebro.

During the fall an entire new generation of battery-powered mining machinery is to be launched. A key person in this is Erik Svedlund, whose job ti-tle is Marketing Manager Vehicle Electrification. He has been in-volved in outlining Epiroc’s vision of emission-free mining environ-ments, made possible by battery power.

“Electric will replace diesel,” says Svedlund. “The machines

that we’re developing here already perform equally well or better than

diesel machines, except for one thing: running time. But with the rate at which batter-ies are developing, it won’t be long before that has caught up too.”

There has been an explosion in the market for electric-powered mining machines and the rea-son is that the technology – primarily battery technology – has matured. The trials carried out previously, using electricity from cables or rails,

involved fixed and awkward solutions. The flex-ibility needed in a mine environment has always caused the decision to come down in favor of die-sel machines. At least, until now.

ERIK SVEDLUND BECAME interested in battery-pow-ered machines back in 2010 and started studying the possibilities.

“At the time I was Head of Products and I quickly realized that battery power could not just replace diesel, but could become a profitable business for both us and our customers. I started lobbying in-ternally to start the development of such solu-tions. This went rather slowly until 2013, when we received a request from a customer in Cana-da. It then took less than a year from prototype to launch of the Scooptram ST7 Battery, and the machine’s performance exceeded expectations.”

The Scooptram ST7 Battery was among the first generation of battery machines from Epiroc. The machines that are being launched in the sec-ond half of 2018 are second generation machines and include not just loaders, but also mine trucks and drill rigs.

“Loaders and mine trucks account for around 80 percent of fuel consumption in mines. These

Suddenly, all the pieces of the puzzle have fallen into place. The battery revolution is under way. From this fall, Epiroc will be more significantly involved in changing

the energy landscape of the mining industry.

[ On location ]Sweden


ON SITE � Christian Tarras Ericsson � Ulla-Carin Ekblom & Shutterstock

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ON SITE

SIMS (Sustainable Intelligent Mining Systems) is a three-year EU-financed project to produce demonstrations of future products for the mining industry. Under the project management of Morgan Rody, Epiroc is coordinating the collaboration between the thirteen partners – which include manufacturers, mining companies and universities.

Q What is the EU expecting SIMS to result in?

A “Our focus is on what’s called Innovation Action. In other words, we start from a re-search project and produce functioning products to demonstrate that the theory works in practice. The EU has high expec-tations of concrete results. Seventy percent of our budget – 13 million euros – comes

from the European Commission. So we have to deliver.”

Q What type of projects are you working on?

A “Battery solutions are a big thing and there’s a lot happening in this field. For example, we compared how great the dif-ference is between diesel and batteries.

What level of particulates does diesel op-eration result in? We also have lots of oth-er projects in progress, such as drones, the next wireless mobile standard 5G, better positioning services, thermal imaging and assisted driving systems for diesel-free machines. Also virtual reality, which has become really hot again. We’re aiming to construct a mine in VR so that we can demonstrate solutions at events such as trade shows. Many of the projects are con-cerned with safety, and we’re proud of that. Each person that can be moved out of a dangerous environment is a gain.”

Q Has the SIMS collaboration worked well? A “Extremely well! It’s useful to meet up

properly. And all the partners are aware that what they are doing now will change the mining industry.”

simsmining.euMore

Erik SvedlundMarketing Manager Vehicle Electrification, Epiroc

Anders LindkvistProject Manager, Epiroc

Morgan RodySenior Project Manager SIMS, Epiroc, Sweden

Q&A

Epiroc’s goal is to offer a zero emission alternative for all underground mining and tunneling equipment. The complexity and demands of these kinds of prod-ucts are high, and Epiroc is us-ing internal expertise as well as expertise coming from battery cell and electric drive train man-ufacturers.

■ The technical solution will vary depending on the type of machine, but everything evolves around the battery electric driveline.

■ Customer interaction has

always been a key factor in Epiroc’s development work, in addition to increased demands as regards safety, health, quality and the envi-ronment.

■ With the zero emission prod-uct portfolio, Epiroc is improv-ing both safety and health. As a leading original equip-ment manufacturer Epiroc considers the mining indus-try’s carbon footprint and shoulders its responsibility as an industry leader.

In focus: Zero emission initiative

For Epiroc’s second generation battery machines, the battery design has changed so that the battery can be replaced in less than 10 minutes. Göran Sjöberg is one of the technicians involved in the project.

types of machines are the key – if we don’t come up with these, we won’t solve anything,” says Erik Svedlund.

AT EPIROC’S TEST mine in Kvarntorp outside Öre-bro, a Scooptram ST7 Battery stands with its bucket full of gravel. If you close your eyes there is nothing to indicate that the loader is running until it starts to move – and all you hear then is the sound of the gears and axles, and the scrunch of tires on gravel. There is no engine noise. As the loader releases the gravel, the jangling can be clearly heard in the otherwise quiet site.

“For the first generation we basically took existing loaders, removed the engine and fuel tank, and put in an electric motor and battery instead,” explains Anders Lindkvist, Project Manager within technological development. He continues:

“But it worked. We were placing bets in the of-fice on how long the machine could run on bat-tery, and all the guesses were between one and

three hours. But it proved to keep going for five hours,” he says with a laugh.

Anders Lindkvist and his team learned a lot while working on the first generation. The sec-ond generation machines were designed for bat-tery operation from the outset; the mine trucks, for example, have motors on each axle. But it is the batteries themselves that are responsible for the biggest change.

“Quite early on we started developing a modu-lar battery system that allows the modules to be used in any kind of Epiroc machine.”

One advantage of the new battery design is that they can be replaced quickly. In less than 10 min-utes a fully charged battery can be in place, so that even energy-intensive operations can continue with only a brief interruption.

IN JUNE, IT was 18 months since Epiroc’s manage-ment gave the green light to developing the sec-ond generation machines. Since then, Anders Lindkvist and his team have been at full throttle.

Anders LindqvistProject Manager, Epiroc

“We started developing a modular battery system that

allows the modules to be used in any kind of Epiroc machine”


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Jonas RanggårdManager Boliden Mines

Energy Program

What does your

electric future look like?

Why is Boliden working on the electrifi-cation of vehicles?

“There are a great many advantages to running vehicles on electricity rath-er than diesel. You can reduce ventila-tion and maintenance costs, and im-prove the work environment. From 2023, for example, the EU will be lowering the limit values for NOx in mining environ-ments. Electricity is definitely the best way to deal with these requirements, but such a transition takes time. That’s why we have to start testing the tech-nology now.”

How far have you got?“We are still in the starting blocks. In

August we began an 18-month project in which we’ll test overhead lines and four mine trucks with current collec-tors in the open-pit copper mine in Aitik. We decided to start with open-pit min-ing because we use most diesel above ground. Once the project has ended, we’ll assess whether the savings meet expectations, how good the availability of the vehicles was and what problems we encountered.”

What will be the next step?“With our switch to autonomous drill-

ing, we’re able to improve upon the rate of production, the accuracy of the holes, and the fragmentation, leading to down-stream improvements in our processes as well as improving our safety.

boliden.comMore

Sofia BrattManager Project Office & Systems Engineering

Fredrik MartinssonMarketing Manager Service Electrification, Epiroc

“This is a new way of working that’s fun and ex-citing. Now we need our suppliers to come up with new solutions at the same rate that we need them.”

Anders Lindkvist thinks for a moment.“It’s tremendously enjoyable to be able to intro-

duce so many new things in such a short time. And on three machines in parallel, too.”

Sofia Bratt agrees. She is responsible for the project office, which has coordinated the work to develop the second generation.

“There’s been very close collaboration in the group and with our suppliers. It’s been huge fun and has developed all those involved, and I think this type of project will become more common in the future.”

Sofia Bratt describes a process in which they have constantly succeeded in breaking new ground.

“We’ve looked at areas such as battery cell chem-istry, drivelines and control systems, and have been able to evaluate what’s most optimal for our applications. An incredible number of people have been involved, which has made great demands of dialogue and communication. It’s required time and resources from everyone involved, but it’s also been very effective.”

IN THE WORKSHOP at Epiroc the first machines are being tested calmly and steadily ahead of their launch this fall. More and more customers are starting to demand battery machines. Although the diesel machines did the job, they also brought with them a load of problems: harmful exhaust emissions, noise, waste heat, high maintenance costs, unplanned stoppages for servicing, rising fuel costs and an increasingly complicated infra-structure.

The battery-powered machines need signifi-cantly less maintenance, not least because an electric motor contains a fraction of the number of moving parts that a diesel engine has. They give off marginal amounts of waste heat and, of course, have no exhaust emissions. And if the batteries are charged using renewable electricity, they have no climate impact either. Safety and sustainability form an integral part of Epiroc’s strategy, and are also a good example of how we can contribute to our customers’ sustainability work and improve their environmental impact. Battery-powered machines can help achieve one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals: ac-cess to affordable, reliable, sustainable and mod-ern energy for all.

“Diesel machines are actually poorly suited for use in enclosed spaces underground. A lot of cool-ing and ventilation are required to deal with the

exhaust emissions and heat, and this has become the single largest energy cost in mines,” says Erik Svedlund.

“If we take away the diesel engine, the situation changes completely. Ventilation costs reduce dra-matically and you can go even deeper while still being cost-effective.”

Unlike the shift to electric cars, therefore, the transition in the mining industry is not primarily driven by legal requirements and more stringent rules on emissions. Underground, the driving force is instead a desire for a safer work environ-ment – and pure and simple economics. The po-tential savings are enormous.

THE PERSON KEEPING an eye on the aftermarket as-pect is Fredrik Martinsson, Marketing Manager Service Electrification.

“Solving the financial model and at the same

time strengthening the tie to our customers is a key activity,” he says.

Fredrik Martinsson’s task is to come up with a brand new business model that will make it as easy as possible for customers to switch to elec-tric operation. The basic idea is that the customer buys the machine, but has a subscription for the batteries. The advantage is that the investment is lower, operating costs are predictable and Epiroc takes all the responsibility for the training, main-tenance and servicing associated with the batter-ies. If a customer needs more or less power, the subscription can be adjusted.

“We want to dramatically lower the threshold for electrification. We want it to be easy. This is a major change, and it will require hard work by many people over a long period. But everyone – suppliers, customers, the environment and our-selves – will be a winner.”

Fredrik Engman, Technician, and Anders Lindkvist, Proj-ect Manager within techni-

cal development, discussing how to best place the power-

train components on a Scooptram ST14 Battery.


ON SITE

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� Christian Tarras Ericsson � Tomas Westermark

THE ISLAND NATION of Samoa has plans to go completely independent of fossil-based energy production by 2025, ultimately al-lowing Samoa to power itself on 100 per-cent renewable energy. To date, Samoa has reached about halfway, with 48 percent of its electricity generated by hydropower, so-lar and wind farms in the year to June 2018.

Samoa imports millions of liters of oil every year and in 2012, Samoa ended up importing 95 million liters of diesel to sup-port its energy grid – particularly after the damage caused to the nation’s hydropower plants by the ravages of Cyclone Evan.

THUS REMOTE LOCATIONS such as Samoa – and for that matter, isolated mine sites far from energy grids – have much to gain from us-ing renewable energy sources instead of costly, complex and environmentally dam-aging fossil fuel-powered generators.

The problem with solar and wind farms, though, is the inability to accurately fore-cast output at any given moment. This leads to grid instability and loss of overproduc-

tion, which in the worst cases for Samoa led to power outages; in the best cases, it meant greater dependence on diesel power.

To counter this Samoa has invested in two Tesla Powerpack installations: battery storage systems with a combined capacity of 13.6 megawatt hours. Together with a grid controller software system, this gives the country real-time control over grid sta-bility, reliability and security.

IN A STATEMENT to newspaper Samoa Ob-server, Samoa’s Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi noted that the systems have helped the country provide additional stability to its power grid.

Since the batteries were installed ear-lier in the summer, the island is no longer having outages and the electricity supply is steady. The local utility has been able to re-duce the use of diesel generators and is now working to tweak the system to use even less diesel. Diesel use will drop further as the utility continues to add new renewable sources.

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Tesla Energy may not, until now, have attracted as much attention as the company’s electric car busi-ness, but projects involving solar and battery installations have been growing at a rapid pace over the last few years. Examples include disaster relief, and bringing grid stability to areas prone to power outages and high energy costs.

Australia is investing heavily in large-scale energy projects, with a major Powerpack farm being built in Victoria and and a proposed Powerwall virtual power plant to supply 50 000 homes in South Australia.

Other projects are being run in Puerto Rico, Ta’u in American Sa-moa and Kauai in Hawaii.

In focusTesla Powerpack

tesla.com/powerpackMore

The battery-run

islandSAMOA TO GO 100 PERCENT RENEWABLE

There are always things to be learned from other organizations and other industries. This is how

another player has approached the theme of this issue.

PERSPECTIVETESLA

miningandconstruction.com38

� Christian Tarras Ericsson� Tesla

39

01 “THE MOST IMPORTANT thing is that it allows climate-smart energy systems based on fos-sil-free sources. The battery

revolution is quite simply a necessi-ty if we are to be able to reduce car-bon emissions and cope with climate change. For the mining industry, bat-tery technology is particularly im-portant because the costs of ven-tilation underground are so high. Electric machinery saves a lot of en-ergy and a lot of money.”

02 “ACCESS TO MINERALS needs to be secured, partly by find-ing new deposits and partly through more efficient recy-

cling technology. We need to speed up the development of this technol-ogy. Secondly, I am a firm believer in sustainability. More and more com-panies and consumers want to know where the metals in batteries are mined and how much of the materi-al is recycled. Traceability will there-fore be necessary – using blockchain technology, for example, which lets us trace metals in a chain of events.”

01 “BATTERY TECHNOLOGY allows us to phase out fossil fuels from the energy system. Hydrocar-bons are combusted, while the

metals in batteries are elements that can be recycled – so the environmen-tal benefit is enormous. Where recy-cling is concerned it is the waste in-dustry that has been most active, but the mining industry is sitting on a treasure trove of knowledge. I hope that this can be shared with the bat-tery industry, so that we get better at using recycled metals.”

02 “ACCESS TO RAW MATERIALS is key, and here too I want to em-phasize recycling. We must not let the same thing happen as in

the telecoms industry, where a massive amount of value is lost because lots of people put their old cellphone in a desk drawer instead of sending it for recycling. Another important thing is that the charging infrastructure needs to be improved in order to be able to cope with peak power loads, so that the industry doesn’t suffer when the pattern of electricity use changes.”

01 “SPEAKING FOR THE EU, we have to be strategic and become inde-pendent in battery innovation and manufacturing. This sector

is potentially worth EUR 250 billion annually from 2025 onwards, while up to 5 million jobs could be creat-ed. We are set to ensure that batteries placed on the EU market are sustain-able throughout their life cycle. This is essential to our climate action com-mitments and our competitiveness.”

02 “THE EUROPEAN Battery Alliance has evolved into a network of 260 innovation and industri-al actors, and their close col-

laboration with the European Com-mission, governments and the EIB. We have seen tabled and planned in-vestments amounting to EUR 100 bil-lion. The Commission and the Mem-ber States are supporting emerging manufacturing projects in their ini-tial stage, exploring new sources of primary and secondary raw materials in Europe, and investing in research and development and smart speciali-sation of active regions.”

01 02 What is needed for this development

to be able to continue?

What are the biggest advantages of the battery revolution?

Maroš Šefcovic

European Commissioner for the Energy Union

Emma NehrenheimHead of Environment

and Sustainability, Northvolt, Sweden

Per AhlCEO, Svemin (Swedish

Association of Mines, Mineral and Metal Producers), Sweden

bit.do/batteryalliancefactsMore

05Lithium-ion batteries

� Li-ion batteries have revolutionized the rechargeable battery segment, being used

in portable electronics, electric vehicles, and military and aerospace applications. They have a high energy density, tiny memory

effect and low self-discharge.

04NiMH batteries� Nickel metal hydride – or NiMH for short – batteries quickly became a popular type of rechargeable cell, avoiding the use of cadmium and other nasty elements. NiMH batteries were long used in hybrid vehicles before the advent of Li-ion.

07Graphene batteries� In the near future, battery designs using the “wonder material” graphene promise even higher energy densities, reduced weight, significantly shorter charging times, 3D printability and extended oper-ational temperature ranges.

Want to delve deeper into the importance of safety as related to the mining and construction business? Make sure not to miss next issue’s Feature.

Next issue[ Feature ]

06Solid state batteries� The next generation of batteries uses solid electrolytes – such as ceramics or glass – in addition to solid electrodes. Advantages include higher energy density and temperature tolerances, as well as lowered charging times.

Galvanic cells� In the year 1800, Italian scientist Alessan-dro Volta stacked alternating disks of zinc and silver separated by fabrics drenched in salt water, with metal connectors to jars of mercury. The world’s first battery was born.

01

Dry cell batteries� The Danish inventor and

industrialist Wilhelm Hellesen designed the first dry cell

battery in 1887. It used a paste electrolyte, making it possible

to operate in any orientation without spilling, and was

thus eminently suitable for portable equipment.

03

Lead acid batteries� French physicist Gaston

Planté – evidently a bold man – lowered sheets of lead into

a sulfuric acid solution in 1859, creating the first rechargeable

battery. Lead acid batteries could deliver remarkably large

currents and are still used today.

02

The charge of the light battery The phenomenon of static electricity is well-known – not least to cat owners and balloon clowns. But how to harness this power?


Want more input on this theme? Three people from different fields

give their views to help paint a broader picture.

� Gustaf Höök

SEVEN THINGS

SURVEYA BATTERY-POWERED FUTURE

miningandconstruction.com 41

� Christian Tarras Ericsson � Shutterstock & Wikimedia

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As Communications and Branding Manager

in Australia, Sue Goc works on both inter-

nal and external com-munication. The switch to Epiroc has made her job more fun and even

more important.

“Good decisions are based on good information”

From rebranding facilities and clothing to communicating with customers, media and employees, no day is ever the same for Sue Goc. She loves the creativity and freedom of being Epiroc Australia’s Communications and Branding Manager.

“S ince 2017 I have been Com-munications and Branding Manager with Epiroc Aus-tralia. The job is quite com-prehensive, as it includes both internal and external communication and we are a new brand with a history.

The company has also grown quite a bit since I joined in 2000, when it was Atlas Copco. Back then we were under 100 people, whereas Epiroc Australia now has over 500 staff members. As Austra-lia is a large country, our people have to travel a lot, making it hard to track down someone. Then there’s the time difference; I’m based in Sydney, but the majority of our stakeholders are in Western Australia. There are definitely challenges, but I really like my job.

THE SWITCH TO EPIROC has been a very positive experience. Since Atlas Copco was so big and diverse, the messag-ing wasn’t necessarily clear at all times – but with Epi-roc it’s very precise. The targeted industry is smaller in that the customer groups are more similar. Epiroc is more open to partnerships and I also feel that commu-nication has become an even more important area. It feels agile and refreshing. The switch has obviously put a lot of emphasis on branding, or rather rebranding.

We have 17 facilities in Australia, maintenance facilities not included, and every little thing had to be changed – from signs to clothing to documents. Plus, I’ve been in charge of giving in-formation to all the right people, inter-nally and externally, about the stand-alone process.

THE MOST REWARDING part of the job is when I make people engage with the brand, for example through a successful Facebook post or story. You put a well-crafted message out, people in-teract in real time and you get a great result. Having previously

worked in journalism, I like the writing part, and I also enjoy graphic design and photog-raphy – putting together a look to create an impres-sion. An important thing I’ve learnt along the road is to be a good listener and not be afraid to ask what people think about your product or brand. Good decisions are based on good information.”

SUE GOCJob: Communications and Branding Manager, Epiroc Australia (based in Sydney)Joined the company: 2000Best part of the job: “The creativity and the freedom, and there’s always something different happening”


Epiroc’s greatest asset is our em-ployees. We take pride in offering

them an outlet for their creativity in order to provide the best possible

value to our customers.

miningandconstruction.com 43

MY WORK: COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

� Gustaf Höök � Joe Wigdahl

W HEN CANADIAN mining company Impe- rial Metals opened the Red Chris

copper and gold mine in northern British Columbia in 2014, they needed a mod-ern, high-production drill-ing rig. The mining com-pany had a PV351 running at one of their other sites that had been the primary production drill rig since 2005, and this unit required either a major overhaul or replacement. It was still performing, but 45 000 drill-ing hours were beginning to take their toll.

A “MIDLIFE REBUILD” seemed like the best option for this workhorse. Sending the rig for a factory refurbishment in the US was, however, out of the question. The transportation costs would be ex-

cessive, and the cost of the downtime high. As the Pit Viper was the primary pro-duction drill, delays had to be kept at a minimum.

“Another issue was the op-erating system (OS) on the Pit Viper. The original OS had been discontinued, so some machines can start ex-

periencing issues with the electron-ics at this stage,” says Dave Robinson, Epiroc Account Manager for British Columbia and Alberta.

THE ORIGINAL OS did not provide the Pit Viper 351 with the same precision and automation capabilities as mod-ern control systems, so if possible the electronics and software had to be up-graded in parallel with the rebuild. This, however, had never been accom-plished in the field before in Canada.

T HE DECISION WAS made to give the Pit Viper 351 a midlife rebuild and control system upgrade in the field. It was to be recommis-

sioned to the Red Chris site, while a brand new drilling rig was commis-sioned at the original site.

Technicians disassembled the Pit Vi-per 351 on site while repairing or chang-ing old parts for new ones, including a new engine and compression systems, undercarriage, rotary head, cylinder, rod support and carousel. Then came the task of modernizing the control system.

“The control system upgrade basical-ly involved removing existing wiring,

boxes and conduits from the main-frame, tower and cab, and replacing them with new components. I think we replaced almost all of the electronics. It was a massive undertaking,” says Dave Robinson.

WITH SUPPORT FROM the Epiroc factory in Garland, Texas, the pre-RCS third party operating system was replaced with RCS-4. After this, the rig was dis-assembled, loaded onto several trucks and moved 1 100 kilometers to the Red Chris mine site. There it was reassem-bled, tested and commissioned in a pe-riod of ten days. The whole process took only a little more than a month.

THE SOLUTION2

THE CHALLENGE1

THE RESULT3

A AT THE TIME of writing, the Pit Viper 351 has kept on drilling for another 18 000 hours. The greatest improvement is in func-

tionality and automation options.“The raw performance is about the

same after the rebuild. It’s a super- powerful monster of a machine,” says Dave Robinson. “But RCS-4 gives you higher reliability, many more options, faster support and far superior accura-cy when drilling. If you use more force than necessary, you can shorten the life of the drill bits. We’ve calibrated and tested the rig on site, and the read-ings are very accurate. That’s what you want,” says Dave Robinson.

He finds the term “midlife rebuild” slightly misleading, preferring to think of it as scheduled maintenance.

“To me, ‘midlife’ implies the rig’s life is half over. But at 20 000 hours or so, our Pit Vipers are still young, just get-ting started.”

IN FACT, the rig has proved so reliable that Red Chris has not needed a back-up Pit Viper on the site.

bit.do/midlifeservicesMore

Dave RobinsonEpiroc Account Manager for BritishColumbia and Alberta

A midlife rebuild and control system upgrade in the field was deemed to be the best option for a seasoned Pit Viper

351 operated by Canadian company Imperial Metals.

Second breath in the pit

[ On location ]Canada


OUR CHALLENGE


� Christian Tarras Ericsson � Joseph Bradfield

Down and running

WASTE PUT TO USE IN MOZAMBIQUE

E VER RACED THROUGH a mine, dressed in runners’ gear with a hard hat on your head? That’s what some 260 people did outside of Stock-holm in mid-September. They were taking part in the annual Sickla

Mine Run, a 2.5 kilometer race that starts and ends above ground but otherwise is held in the Sickla Mine, where Epiroc equipment is tested.

“This is the fourth time the race has been held,” says former Epiroc employee Lennart Gustafsson, who came up with the initial idea.

“It has been a great success, and it was particularly pleasing to see that more than half of the runners were women.”

THE RACE IS organized by local sports club Järla IF and is open to the public. Gus-

tafsson has been involved since day one and is respon-sible for the underground part of the race.

“The biggest challenge is to make sure that the surface and light conditions don’t pose any danger to the run-ners, while keeping the mine vibe,” he says.

H AVING A SCHOOL desk should be a given for any child going to school. In the Tete province in Mozambique, it’s not. That’s why Angelica Coana and Bill Jenkins at Epiroc Mozambique – Logistics Coordinator and Country Manager respectively – thought twice before letting the wooden hoods that came with Pit Vipers,

delivered by Epiroc to customer Vale, go to waste.“We contacted the local authorities, asking if they’d like us

to manufacture school desks and donate them to two schools: EPC Mutarara Moatize and EPC Xitata. They were more than happy, of course. I visited the schools and took some photos, before the design was made and a carpenter was assigned to manufacture the desks,” says Angelica Coana.

Epiroc Mozambique purchased the steel needed for the manufacturing and a total of 60 desks were made. They were delivered on March 1, much to the satisfaction of both the customer and the schools.

“Vale was very positive and suggest-ed that we engage in more social proj-ects in the future. And the schools… they were so, so happy. A lot of their students were sat on the floor before re-ceiving the desks. We all know that chil-dren are the future, and being able to improve their conditions to study feels truly special,” says Angelica Coana.

She adds:“I’m hoping that this project can inspire others at Epiroc.

The need we identified is common in Africa, so we should try to put more wood to use.”

sicklaloppet.seMore

On March 1, 60 school desks – made of wood from hoods that came with

Pit Vipers – were delivered to two schools in Mozambique.

Lennart Gustafssonformer employee, Epiroc

epirocgroup.com/en/sustainability

Read more

A fulfilling way for young peo-ple to spend their free time is one of the most important things a community can offer. That’s the idea behind Tegel-

bruket in Örebro – an open meetingplace, primarily aimed at young people aged from 16 to 25. Run on a not-for-profit basis, it is a joint venture between the organizer YMCA Örebro and adult educational association Sensus.

“All are welcome here,” says Operations Manager Thomas Rasmusson. “Tegelbruket is an open arena for young people who want to hang out, develop them-selves and have a good time.”

It also provides a base for various independent clubs – such as a boxing club and climbing club – that visitors can go to. In total, the premises are regularly visited by about a thousand young people each day. Activities at Tegelbruket include skatepark sessions, organized dance, sports, a gym and study support, where uni-versity students help high school students with their schoolwork.

ANOTHER PIECE IN the puzzle of how to stim-ulate long-term positive development is a mentoring program, giving young people aged 14–17 individual support for a year in areas such as career choices and home-work help. The initiative is run in collabora-tion with various external partners, among them Epiroc.

“Epiroc has been on board from the start and has contributed about a third of the 250 mentors that we’ve been able to provide. The company is usu-ally also involved in the big events that we organize. It means so much to have large employers helping out in this way,” says Thomas Rasmusson.

HE THINKS IT is hard to overestimate Tegelbruket’s sig-nificance for the young people of Örebro.

“We’re important to a huge number of people. Un-doubtedly, they include some youngsters who would have gone down the wrong track otherwise – so there is a great social benefit. When it comes to avoiding social exclusion, the benefit is massive.”

Next to an old brickworks is the biggest youth initiative in Örebro’s history. Epiroc has supported the venture right from the start.

Tegelbruket a success in Örebro

Giving youth a chance

Tegelbruket is an open youth arena. In total, the premises are regularly

visited by about a thousand young people each day.

Thomas RasmussonOperations Manager, Tegelbruket

[ On location ]Sweden

� Gustaf Höök � Jens Hellman, Sergio Manjate & Ryno Quantz

Superfluous wood that would be thrown away – and two local schools in need of desks for the students. For Epiroc Mozambique, it was a no-brainer.

[ On location ]Mozambique

Angelica CoanaLogistics Coordina-tor, Epiroc Mozam-bique


SUSTAINABILITY

On August 15, 1962, miners under the Mont Blanc massif covered their ears with their hands, waiting for the explosion that would open the tunnel connecting France to Italy. It marked the beginning of the end for the huge project, which posed various challeng-es for the two contractors each responsible for 5 800 meters of tunnel. Italy’s Condotte d’Acqua – faced with granite, schist, coal schist, and fissured and deteriorated rock – had to use light rock drills, and the company selected Atlas Copco equipment (and Atlas Copco personnel for all servicing) in order to succeed. For Atlas Copco, the Mont Blanc project was the culmination of the Swedish Method – a superior combination of a strong but light drill with a pneumatic pusher leg and tungsten carbide drill bits.

The Mont Blanc Tunnel opened for traffic on July 16, 1965.

Portfolio Mont Blanc Tunnel

bit.do/montblanctunnelfactsMore

48 Mining & Construction | No. 02 | 2018 miningandconstruction.com 49

Innovative products and a wide array of cus-tomers: Epiroc is a new company with a long

and rich history, dating all the way back to 1873. In each issue of Mining & Construction,

we glimpse in the rearview mirror.

� Gustaf Höök� Gerard Gery/Paris Match (via Getty Images)

BLAST FROM THE PASTYEAR 1962

23 Southern Africa Johannesburg

24 Middle East Dubai

25 India Pune

26 Central Asia Almaty

27 Mongolia Ulaanbaatar

28 Gr. China Nanjing

29 Southeast Asia (South)

Jakarta

30 Southeast Asia (North)

Bangkok

31 Korea Seoul

32 Japan Yokohama

33 Australia Perth

01 Canada Toronto

02 USA Denver

03 Mexico Mexico City

04 CVCA Bogota

05 Andean Lima

06 Chile Santiago

07 Brazil São Paulo

08 Argentina Buenos Aires

09 Sweden Stockholm

10 Finland Helsinki

11 Norway Oslo

12 UK & Ireland Hemel Hempstead

13 Europe 1 Essen

14 Southern Europe & Northern Africa

Milan

15 Spain Madrid

16 Portugal Lisbon

17 Central Europe

Prague

18 Turkey Istanbul

19 Russia Moscow

20 Mali & Burkina Faso

Bamako

21 Ghana Obuasi

22 Eastern Africa

Nairobi

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[ In focus ]Shanghai, China

Hello there! What’s happening in Shanghai?ON NOVEMBER 27–30, hun-dreds of thousands of peo-ple will go to Shanghai to visit Bauma China, Asia’s largest trade fair for the con-struction industry. Epiroc is exhibiting for the ninth time a row. We talked to Mavis Wang, Marketing Manager at Epiroc China and one of Epiroc’s exhibition or-ganizers.

What can visitors expect from Bauma China this year?

“Visitors will have the opportunity to see the industry’s upgrade in more than one way. New products will be launched with better technology and a more environmentally friendly focus. Dig-italization will also be one of the main focus ar-eas. Epiroc will have two customer workshops at the fair for two product launch activities, and also one contract signing ceremony.”

What impact does Bauma China have for Epiroc?“The Bauma trade fair is the most important

event in this industry. First and foremost, it’s a great opportunity for us to strengthen relation-ships and meet business partners, old and new.”

Apart from Bauma China, what’s happening at Epiroc in China right now?

“Digitalization is improving our operational ef-ficiency. At the end of summer we launched a ser-vice portal app where we can follow our service resources at every step and help them along the way – for example, by pointing out the availabil-ity of our service engineers at different locations. Our first focus has been on improving the inter-nal work efficiency of the service team. In our next phase of the project, customer experience optimization will be the major focus.”

Mavis Wang Marketing Manager, Epiroc China

epiroc.comFind Epirocin your country:

01 Canada Toronto

02 USA Denver

03 Mexico Mexico City

04 CVCA Bogota

05 Andean Lima

06 Chile Santiago

07 Brazil São Paulo

08 Argentina Buenos Aires

09 Sweden Stockholm

10 Finland Helsinki

11 Norway Oslo

12 UK & Ireland Hemel Hempstead

13 Europe 1 Essen

14 Southern Europe & Northern Africa

Milan

15 Spain Madrid

16 Portugal Lisbon

17 Central Europe

Prague

18 Turkey Istanbul

19 Russia Moscow

20 Mali & Burkina Faso

Bamako

21 Ghana Obuasi

22 Eastern Africa

Nairobi

23 Southern Africa Johannesburg

24 Middle East Dubai

25 India Pune

26 Central Asia Almaty

27 Mongolia Ulaanbaatar

28 Gr. China Nanjing

29 Southeast Asia (South)

Jakarta

30 Southeast Asia (North)

Bangkok

31 Korea Seoul

32 Japan Yokohama

33 Australia Perth

AT YOUR SERVICE

OUR CUSTOMERS ARE located all over the world and so are we. There is always an Epiroc office to turn to, making us truly local. At the same time, we are a global enterprise with worldwide resources. We have Customer

Centers in 33 regions. In each one, there are one or more Service Centers.

All this supports our goal: Count on us to listen, collaborate and deliver the right solutions for you.

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Closer than you might think


CLOSE TO YOU


� Sanna Persson Shutterstock

W hat does the DiscovOre Compass do?

“It records core sample orientation at the bottom of the hole. The probe mea-sures and records the orientation and inclination of

the core and sends the data wirelessly to the handheld unit when it is retrieved back to the surface.”

How is it different from other core barrels?“The DiscovOre Compass has an increased

range and a reader that makes it possible to ar-chive the results as digital data. No manual edit-ing is needed and reports can be exported from the controlling handheld unit via Wi-Fi, Blue-tooth, email or the cloud. Our compass will fit in a standard core barrel and no core barrel exten-sions are required. The Compass head assembly is the same length as a standard head assembly. It is also shock resistant and waterproof cased.”

How will this product improve your clients’ business?

“Geologists always ask for a lot of infor-mation and drillers need to comply, which means a lot more work.

The DiscovOre Compass makes it eas-ier for the driller to record the infor-mation geologists are asking for. It’s a very precise measuring tool and the in-creased range between the reader and orientation instrument makes it very easy to use. Also, the long-life battery means there is very little maintenance.”

What was your role in developing this product?

“I integrated the electronics into the mechani-cal components and ensured proper function and reliability of the whole system. I created multiple CAD designs and used 3D printers to create the prototypes. We then tested the product on a drill rig and made further improvements to its usability and durability.”

■ Compatible with all Epiroc core drill-ing rigs

■ Has a non-magnetic orientation tool, an inclination accuracy of ±0.1 degrees, an orientation accuracy of ±0.5 degrees and a temp range of −15 °C to +70 °C (+14 °F to +140 °F)

■ On the market in 2019

The DiscovOre Compass

Patrick SalvadorR&D and Marketing Product Specialist, Rock Drilling Tools division

Good measureDiscovOre Compass

The unique core barrel head assembly of the DiscovOre Compass uses wireless communication technology and will streamline geotechnical demands during exploration drilling. Patrick Salvador, one of its creators, goes into detail.

FROM THE LAB


� Sanna Persson � Marklund Film

mining & no ucti r t s n co · technical applica-tions, well drilling, oil and gas....

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